Lacy Afternoon's Shell Kepler Dies!

[SecondhandSophisticate]

A few months ago, I had a Lacy Afternoon jumpsuit siting at a local thrift. Really, the design was like Ma Kettle meets Queen Victoria via Saturday Night Fever. This clothing line was one of the hits of the 90s for those of you who remember Shell Kepler hawking her wares on HSN. She had devoted followers and a fan club and everything.

I just read that Shell Kepler the creator of this clothing line, has passed away! She was only 49 years young. I am in total shock. I was a BIG General Hospital fan back in the late 70s, when Shell made her debut as the nosy Amy Vining.   I can't imagine GH without her, though she may have been off the show for a few years. I do remember her clothing line taking off in such a big way that in one year ('94?) she had something like 20 million in sales.

Rest in peace, Shell Kepler. Luke and Laura and Leslie and Lucky and LuLu will miss you.Port Charles will miss you. My mother will miss you. And I will miss you.  I hope heaven is the Victorian garden of your dreams. And ladies, if you find any "Lacy Afternoon" pieces in your thrift journies, do treat them with respect.

Ciao,
Sad SeSo

[oceangurl]

Oh wow! I remember Shell Kepler from GH and also from her clothing line on hsn! To bad she passed away, so young! What did she pass away from? I so remember her jumpsuits and if Iam correct shoulder pads, I use to wear them in everything, including my pajamas, (oh the old glamour Joan Collins from Dalllas comes back to haunt me) shirts, jackets etc! What a hoot! Thank God my recollections are vast but anything to incriminate me such as photos are limited! Good Grief, that and the "big hair" I wore its a wonder the fashion police didnt arrest me, dead on! lol! Ah the virtues of womanhood!

[SecondhandSophisticate]

I feel so bad.  I am so glad somebody remembers her here. My mom was sad, too. I used to watch her on Home Shopping and she was always so happy (I did not like the clothes--I think we discussed this on another post a few weeks ago) but a lot of women loved her stuff. I really like her acting on GH. I still watch GH occasionally, just to keep my hand in. I started watching it in 1976. My mom has been watching it since it went on in 1963.

O oceangurl, you made me laugh and laugh with your descriptions of the "80s" days. Did you know that Betsy Johnson just came out and said that the 80s were the best decade for fashion??!?!  :oFor her, maybe I worked in corporate American and in a non-profit where "office clothes" were necessary, and let me tell you--it was a nightmare (as you already know, lol) I WISH you had pics of how you looked back in the day. I never had the big hair, but I did have the shoulder pads upon shoulder pads upon shoulder pads. Really, I looked like a living room couch . Do you remember the huge earrings and all the big fake jewelry?  Ye Gods, the eye makeup. Halloween was everyday for SURE!

I used to have photo ids from where I worked. I looked like a talk-show host. Or a yenta. I was wearing pearls and everything. The,"Dahling, how arrrrrrrrrrrrrrre you, kiss-kiss" suburban matron charity babe sort-of-thing "look". Ewwwwwww.

When I wasn't working (rarely), in was easier for me to dress. Button-down levis and some great boots, a man's jacket, some vintage stuff from the 60s, one great cashmere scarf (I still have it) and I was good-to-go. Everybody wanted a Rolex or Cartier watch! And everybody had to have a Coach handbag (at least up in Fairfield County, dahling--as you know, lol!!)

I will agree that the 80s did have great "street" fashion. 

Did you look like a "mall rat"? Or a "Guidette"? Or like one of the secretaries in "Working Girl"?  LOL!!

xo,
SeSo

[SecondhandSophisticate]

PS:  Oceangurl, I almost forgot:  Do you remember when Linda
Evans had a baby on "Dynasty"? (Do you know--I've never seen Dynasty--but I heard about it!)   I heard from one of my girlfriends that she had on shoulderpads during the delivery...and right afterward, LOL??? And a TON of eyemakeup too. With evah-so- carefully sprayed big hair, of course.

I don't know what Shell Kepler passed from. She was so young!  

[foutchie]

I read it was renal failure......she was a friendly, perky girl, shame she left so young........I wonder if she's been ill for a while - hadn't seen nor heard of her nor her products in quite some time!   I did have one of her necklaces in the 90s......

[oceangurl]

  Oh Seso you are sooooooo funny! No I never really did watch Dallas, but on the one occassion I might have caught it was (to funny) the time she gave birth, yes indeedy in shoulder pads, makeup and just coiffed hair! In answer to your question I was a combo of Italian/Portugese (thick black eyebrows, ha, big hair, short, tiny) Conn. mallrat/definatley Guidette! Remember that movie along time ago called "Jersey Girl" That pretty girl with dark hair was in it, Jamie Gertz, I think its the movie where she falls for this guy way out of her league who is very handsome and rich and drives a sports car, anyhow good movie if you ever can catch it! I was like her, a Jersey girl! Oh you crack me up with descriping yourself as corporate darhling Iam here glamour! You remind me of when Oprah Winfrey first started out and she wore huge shoulder pads, huge hair and big earrings, even she cringes when they show reruns of her first few shows, I have heard her exclaim "What was I thinking?" She proudfully wore shoulder pads which made her look bigger than life and only accentuated her large frame, just so funny how us women do all these things in the name of fashion! And oh I love Betsy Johnson, love her quirkeness, her fun fashions and most of all ( I saw a show of one of her beach houses) the way she decorates. She is so fun! I wish I could only afford to be like her! Thanx for the recollactions and laughs! Ciao Bella Darhlin! 

[Cookie]

OMG!  I'm in total shock that she died.  49 is so young!!!  I LOVED GH, especially back in the day when Rick Springfield, Demi Moore, and John Stamos were on.  Shoulder pad city.  I also loved to hate Amy Vining, what a great character.  I had the whole big hair/big jewelry/big makeup thing going, too.  I would buy the Aquanet extra super hold hairspray in the largest can they had and I wouldn't even go to the corner store without my black eyeliner on.  My sister and I shared a set of hot rollers and we would fight over them every morning.  I also remember having the dilemma of wearing a blouse with shoulder pads and then wanting to put a jacket over the blouse, which also had shoulder pads, and wondering which shoulder pads I should take out so I wouldn't look like a linebacker (I already have pretty broad shoulders).  I had to think ahead...if I was going to take the jacket off, I should keep the shoulder pads in the blouse, but what if it was cold and I needed to wear the jacket all day?  Hmm....must watch General Hospital so I can think clearly.

[SecondhandSophisticate]

O foutchie and Cookie, so glad you have joined the Shell Kepler mourning circle. A few weeks ago, I had a chance to buy a Lacy Afternoon jumpsuit, too. Drat!

Character-wise, Amy did drive me nuts. I never saw her do any actual nursing, and with those five nails, how could she have? So, what a great actress!

foutchie, I heard it was renal failure also. Shell was quite a savvy business woman too, I understand. May she rest in peace in that big Port Charles in the sky, along with Lila and Jessie and and Dr. Steve Hardy. You are all loved and missed!

Cookie, your post had me laughing and laughing. I can sooooo identify with the shoulder pad thing. Lord, how I hated them. I do so totally understand how tough it was to dress: pads in shirt, pads in jacket, pads in coat. My clothes weighed more than I did, lol.

It's your thinking ahead re: the shoulder pads that impresses me. What planning! What foresight! LOL!!

You know, there are a few of us in this area (you, me, Oceangurl, Lizardsally, Chrissmiss occasionally) we should all get together and have an 80s day--buy all our stuff from thrifts and dress like it's 1999, LOL!

[oceangurl]

Oh Cookie how I remember Aquanet! It was like sticky glue adhesive for your hair,lol! My hairdresser would always say "Using that crappy Aquanet again Cindy?" and I would say "why noooo, of course not!" when everybody and their mother knew that not one hair on my head would move, I use to get a perm every six months, NOW I (for the past 3 yrs) have just let my hair grown completley out and let it be what it was when I was younger, and that is straight, with a slight wave, it is in the middle of my back and I havent been to the hairdresser in at least 7 months or so, I let every layer grow out and just figured "to heck with it" I was so tired of fighting the curling iron every morning, now its just wash and air dry, but I must be honest I still spray some Aquanet on the top when its wet and then when it drys comb it thru , to give the top some body! Old habits never die! ha! At  least I dont have stock in Aquanet anymore! Ciao Bella! 

[Jay2TheRescue]

Oh Cookie how I remember Aquanet! It was like sticky glue adhesive for your hair,lol! My hairdresser would always say "Using that crappy Aquanet again Cindy?" and I would say "why noooo, of course not!" when everybody and their mother knew that not one hair on my head would move, I use to get a perm every six months, NOW I (for the past 3 yrs) have just let my hair grown completley out and let it be what it was when I was younger, and that is straight, with a slight wave, it is in the middle of my back and I havent been to the hairdresser in at least 7 months or so, I let every layer grow out and just figured "to heck with it" I was so tired of fighting the curling iron every morning, now its just wash and air dry, but I must be honest I still spray some Aquanet on the top when its wet and then when it drys comb it thru , to give the top some body! Old habits never die! ha! At  least I dont have stock in Aquanet anymore! Ciao Bella! 

LOL, I think the decline of AquaNet is due to the popularity of Grunge music in the early 90's.  Grunge signalled the end of the hair metal era, and without the rockstars going through a case a day AquaNet was on the decline...

-Jay

[oceangurl]

Yeah I think your right Jay! I always wondered how they got those awful mohair hairstyles to stick up in the air, I should have known that Aquanet would play a part in it! lol!

[Andrew]

Funny that you should mention shoulder pads and Shell.  I lived with Shell the last 8 months of her life. Although most people talk about her acting, her passion was fashion.  She would frequently skip wearing a necklace, but never go out without the proper shoulder pads.

[Jay2TheRescue]

Yeah I think your right Jay! I always wondered how they got those awful mohair hairstyles to stick up in the air, I should have known that Aquanet would play a part in it! lol!

I can remember my sisters would bend over and let their hair hang "upside down" for lack of a better way of saying it.  Liberally apply the Aqua Net, let it set up for a moment, then flick it back for the ultimate 80's big hair.

-Jay